Personal Info
- Country of residence: Palestine
Information
Mahmoud Khaled Al-Hanafi was born in the Burj al-Shamali Palestinian refugee camp in Tyre, southern Lebanon, on March 1, 1976, to a Palestinian refugee family originally from the depopulated village of Al-Kasayir in the occupied Haifa district. He is married and has two sons and two daughters. He completed his primary education at the UNRWA-run Al-Sarafand Elementary School in the Burj al-Shamali camp and at the Al-Shuhada School in Sidon. He attended secondary school at the Modern Education High School in Sidon, graduating in 1995. He earned a Bachelor of Laws degree in Political Science from the Lebanese University in 1999, a Bachelor of Social Sciences degree from the same university in 2002, a Master of Laws degree in 2007, and a PhD in International Humanitarian Law from Beirut Arab University in 2014. He has served as the director of the Palestinian Human Rights Organization (Witness) since 1998 and has lectured in International Law and Human Rights at the Lebanese International University and Jinan University since 2014.
Al-Hanafi became involved in academic, social, educational, political and popular activities related to the Palestinian cause, especially those supporting the rights of Palestinian refugees in Lebanon. He became a member of the General Secretariat of the Popular Conference for Palestinians Abroad since its establishment in 2017. He also participated in a number of international conferences supporting the Palestinian cause and expressing the aspirations of the Palestinian people and their pursuit of liberation and return.
Al-Hanafi published a collection of research papers, studies, and legal and human rights articles related to the Palestinian issue. He has several publications, including: The Palestinian Democratic Experience: A Legal Reading, Legal Readings, The Jerusalem Legal Guide, and Legal Cards - West Bank.
Al-Hanafi opposes the Oslo Accords, viewing them as a legal transgression committed against the Palestinian people that hindered their struggle, thus encouraging the occupation to infringe upon their rights. He opposes negotiations as a means to restore rights, believes in the Palestinian people's struggle, and considers it essential for restoring rights and holy sites and the return of Palestinian refugees to their homes from which they were displaced, in accordance with international law. He calls for concerted efforts to liberate Palestine and restore it as an integral part of the Arab and Islamic world. He believes that division is an evil that must be eliminated through cooperation among all Palestinians on clear national foundations based on effective political participation and democratic party representation. He considers the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) a major national achievement that represents the Palestinian people, but believes it needs reform and to utilize existing capabilities and resources, in addition to representing all Palestinians within it.
Al-Hanafi is optimistic about the course and outcomes of the Palestinian cause in light of the escalating resistance operations. He believes that all previous political experiences have failed to achieve their goals, and he stresses the urgent need to renew the political discourse in line with the aspirations of the Palestinian people. He believes that the current Palestinian system is a dictatorial system, given that the three legislative, executive, and judicial authorities are run by one person, and he calls for its fundamental amendment. As for the democratic reality of the Palestinian factions, he considers it relatively acceptable, especially within the resistance movements. He also believes that the Arab and Islamic nation has much good in it, even though the current circumstances are difficult and complex, but they are temporary.
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